That swiss team qualified top of their group and only lost on penalties to the Ukraine in 06
They were a horrible side to play against.
Kerr was dour but he was a good manager and didnt get a fair deal because his face didnt fit.
Kerr had plenty of talent at his disposal. Given and Andy O’Brien had played champions league players with Newcastle, Finnan, Stephen Carr, Cunningham, Dunne, John O’Shea, Andy Reid, Stephen Reid, Kilbane, Duff, Roy and Robbie Keane, Clinton Morrison etc were all premier league regulars and solid players.
Far removed from what every manager since has had
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Ok, you’re being silly now.
Trap brought clarity of purpose, everyone knew exactly what they had to do, and discipline (he got rid of Andy Reid and his banjo) which was needed.
Kerr was always very cautious, but possibly deserved another campaign.
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Trap was the worst Irish manager ever, he should have been gone immediately after Euro 2012. Some lads have very short memories. The great Irish performance in Paris only happened because the players took it upon themselves to ignore his tactics and just go for it.
I think lads forget just how poor we were in the last 60 minutes at home to Israel and in the final home game against Switzerland. Completely risk adverse football and zero creativity despite having a very good side on paper. The campaign had started well but completely fizzled out. Did Kerr lose his bottle? It was entirely in his and the teams hands to get out of the group but instead we finished 4th
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Everyone looked shit against that Swiss team.
And against Israel who we threw away a two goal lead against when Kerr replaces an injured striker after 30 minutes with a midfielder and completely surrendered the initiative and unsettling the team.
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He was very dour, but I think he deserved another campaign. Staunton and Trap had a good shot of the same squad and we didnt qualify for another campaign until 2012. I’d have much preferred we kept Kerr than got Staunton
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The squad that Trap inherited was very different. Carr, Finnan, O’Brien, Cunningham, Holland, Harte, Morrison, Roy Keane were all done at that stage and Steven Reid only played two games and was crocked after that. Trap had half a dozen good players by Irish standard and a lot of dross and forged a solid if unspectacular side out of them.
Would you have had Staunton over Kerr?
Granted he was playing poorly but subbing Robbie Keane wit the bones of half an hour to go against the Swiss and we needing a goal and replacing him with Stephen Elliott was another baffling call. Fair enough if it was a change of approach and a Gary Doherty was introduced but in all honesty Elliott isn’t going to get you that opportunity you need to win a tight game
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In hindsight Kerr had a good set of players. A 20 goal a season premier league striker in Robbie Keane, Premier League winning captain in Roy Keane, a Premier League winning winger in Damien Duff, Champions winning RB in Steve Finnan, one of the most reliable keepers in the division in Shay Given. Would have qualified but for the concession of cheap goals against Israel home and away.
No, I have nothing against Kerr but we were in the box seat half way through that campaign and it went to pieces. It didn’t work and it was obvious in the performances at the end that the players weren’t really playing for him and had lost faith
Surprising given that he’d given a few of them a leg up in their careers. Third in the world in 97 and then the u16 and u18 euros.
His face never fit. Maybe if he’d gone and managed in England and got a profile he’d have gotten a fairer crack of the whip.
I think he’s a very good pundit too. Theres absolutely no bullshit, and he has a very good eye for a player.
I’d be blaming the players if you think they wouldnt play for a manager at international level
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I think that was fairly telling when he went on the late late show the week after the Swiss game to pretty much publicly pled to keep his job than none of those lads came out and backed him. If they had he would have kept his job
There was a very decent generation of Irish footballers who we basically only got the 2002 World Cup out of. A few of them made 2012 but were more or less finished.
Keane x 2, Duff, Dunne, Given, Carr, Finnan all very decent players. To be the spine of a team
Kerrs punditry is generally good, but he could lay off the “Ah janey the ball hit your man in the mush, that’s a sore one, wha?”
Assume he had offers from UK after Ireland and The Faroes
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He was heavily linked with the Norn Iron gig when Michael O’Neill got it from what I remember.
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If you can distill that shit out he’s very sharp. He’s quite funny too in a dry sort of a way. I like him anyway. He’s a pure soccer man
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